Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In the synoptics, the story demonstrates the power of love, compassion, and justice in transforming our material world.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In the synoptics, the story demonstrates the power of love, compassion, and justice in transforming our material world.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Social Jesus\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HerbMontgomeryofRHM\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-07-25T13:20:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-07-25T13:20:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/1222\/2024\/07\/SJ55.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"580\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Herb Montgomery\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@HerbMontgomery\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Herb Montgomery\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/\",\"name\":\"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-07-25T13:20:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-07-25T13:20:58+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#\/schema\/person\/26e337fc68cc87d32a2927e9e42faca4\"},\"description\":\"In the synoptics, the story demonstrates the power of love, compassion, and justice in transforming our material world.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/\",\"name\":\"Social Jesus\",\"description\":\"What a first-century, Jewish prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of making our society a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#\/schema\/person\/26e337fc68cc87d32a2927e9e42faca4\",\"name\":\"Herb Montgomery\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5b010cbc5f6c9ea988c104f693dcc9ef?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5b010cbc5f6c9ea988c104f693dcc9ef?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"Herb Montgomery\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.renewedheartministries.com\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HerbMontgomeryofRHM\/\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/HerbMontgomery\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/author\/hmontgomery\/\"}]}<\/script>\n","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3","description":"In the synoptics, the story demonstrates the power of love, compassion, and justice in transforming our material world.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3","og_description":"In the synoptics, the story demonstrates the power of love, compassion, and justice in transforming our material world.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/","og_site_name":"Social Jesus","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HerbMontgomeryofRHM\/","article_published_time":"2024-07-25T13:20:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-07-25T13:20:58+00:00","og_image":[{"width":580,"height":300,"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/1222\/2024\/07\/SJ55.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Herb Montgomery","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@HerbMontgomery","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Herb Montgomery","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/","name":"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#website"},"datePublished":"2024-07-25T13:20:00+00:00","dateModified":"2024-07-25T13:20:58+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#\/schema\/person\/26e337fc68cc87d32a2927e9e42faca4"},"description":"In the synoptics, the story demonstrates the power of love, compassion, and justice in transforming our material world.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/","name":"Social Jesus","description":"What a first-century, Jewish prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of making our society a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#\/schema\/person\/26e337fc68cc87d32a2927e9e42faca4","name":"Herb Montgomery","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5b010cbc5f6c9ea988c104f693dcc9ef?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5b010cbc5f6c9ea988c104f693dcc9ef?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg","caption":"Herb Montgomery"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.renewedheartministries.com","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HerbMontgomeryofRHM\/","https:\/\/twitter.com\/HerbMontgomery"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/author\/hmontgomery\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4129"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

{"id":8625,"date":"2024-07-25T09:20:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-25T13:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/?p=8625"},"modified":"2024-07-25T09:20:58","modified_gmt":"2024-07-25T13:20:58","slug":"transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/socialjesus\/2024\/07\/transcending-escaping-engaging-transforming-part3\/","title":{"rendered":"Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, Part 3"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

$\"\"$ <\/p>\n

As we wrap up our consideration of Transcending, Escaping or Engaging and Transforming, I\u2019ve made it no secret that my soul resonates more deeply with the synoptics\u2019 version of the kingdom. We should be about transforming our world, not escaping it. We should be about making our present world a safe, compassionate, just home for all, not becoming so heavenly minded that we\u2019re no earthly good.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Welcome Readers! <\/i><\/b>Please subscribe to Social Jesus Here<\/i><\/b><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

(Read this series from the beginning at\u00a0Part 1<\/a>\u00a0and Part 2<\/a>.)<\/b><\/p>\n

It is also true that in the synoptic gospels Jesus rejects being king. In the temptation stories of Matthew and Luke, Jesus refuses a position of power at the helm of the kingdoms of this world. This could be argued as a rejection of the empires of this world and their peace through military violence: Jesus\u2019 kingdom in the synoptics is about bringing about peace on earth through distributive justice.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

John\u2019s rejection of kingship is quite different. The Johannine Jesus rejects being made king by force because he is much more concerned with giving his followers a way to transcend the injustice in our world than with engaging and transforming it.<\/p>\n

All of the gospel communities would have had a lot to say to those in the Christian \u201cmoral majority\u201d today seeking political power to enforce their version of morality. Jesus followers historically have never handled political power well. When Christians have become \u201cking,\u201d we have tended to deal more death than give life. And while I do believe there is a time and place to influence how our societies are shaped in our effort to make our world a more just home for everyone, the morality of the Christian right isn\u2019t about making our world safe for everyone and ensuring that everyone has enough to thrive, but about enforcing their<\/i> beliefs regarding how they<\/i> believe everyone in society should behave. Those beliefs are worth taking a look at and challenging.<\/p>\n

Lastly in this week\u2019s reading from John, we have a version of the story of Jesus walking on water. This story portrays Jesus as transcending our material existence. In the synoptics the story demonstrates the power of Jesus and Jesus\u2019 teachings to transform our material world.\u00a0 <\/span>For John, Jesus is above it all, leading us on a path of transcendence.<\/p>\n

What does this have to say to us today?<\/p>\n

A focus on transcending this world comes from John\u2019s gospel. But as Jesus followers, we must allow ourselves to be confronted by the fact that that focus has not always produced good fruit. Coming away to rest and be refreshed is not transcendence or escape. It\u2019s to recharge so we can continue our work. The synoptic gospels admonish us as Jesus followers to engage our world, to transform it, to work alongside others working to shape our world into a home for everyone, a home where everyone has their needs met, a home that is safe, rooted in distributive justice, and founded on compassion and the recognition that each of us bears the image of the Divine and is part of one another.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I long for the day when Christianity in the U.S. makes the news for pushing that agenda.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Are you receiving all of RHM\u2019s free resources each week?<\/p>\n

Begin each day being inspired toward love, compassion, justice and action. Free.<\/p>\n

Sign up at:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/renewedheartministries.com\/Contact-forms\/?form=EmailSignUp<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

$\"\"$ <\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"