As best as I can tell, God started something in our community last Sunday.  Philippians 2:1-11 seemed to resonate in our hearts.  I have no capacity to articulate what I was experiencing that morning…in both services, but especially in the first, where I was so caught off guard by what was happening.  It seems so cliched to say “God showed up”…but I’m failing to find any other words to paint with.  In my mind, we stumbled into a room where God had been waiting all along.  In there, we touched His heart and it changed us.  Well….it changed me anyway….I’m hoping it’s us.

It’s with this experience that I’m inviting all my friends and family to join me in an experiment in “intentional humility”.  It will be a fast…a solidarity fast.  What’s that?  I’ll give more information as we go.  Just start praying about joining me…its less than a month away. 

 June 11th-13th, 2007…I will weep with the weeping.

Hey all.  Sorry for the delay in posts.  I’ve decided that Justin’s Apology is going to be a project I’ll work on as I have time, but not something I’ll clog up this website with.  I’m afraid its put off my fellow bloggers from posting…and I hate to see that happen.

I want to leave off Justin’s Apology with just one more chapter….the most compelling chapter of all to me.  It was the piece of Justin’s apology that I read in a library 15 years ago, which changed my view of church forever.  It is Justin’s description of a typical gathering of the church…its the oldest snapshot we have of how the early church carried out it’s meetings….and I LOVE it.  I relish this chapter…chapter 67….it woke me up, gave me hope and is literally the basis for Eastgate, the church I’m now a part of.  Read what he says the meeting of the church was like, 1900 some years ago…and revel in the simplicity and kindness of that original “wonderwhat”.

I give you chapter 67 of Justin’s first apology:

Chapter LXVII.-Weekly Worship of the Christians.  

It’s our habit to regularly remind each other of the things we believe.  Those who have the means to do it take care of the needs of those who are poor among us.  We stick with each other through thick and thin, and we thank God for supplying for all our needs.  He made everything and gives us everything we need in His Son Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Spirit.

On the day called Sunday, whether we live in the city or live in the country, we all meet together in one place, and we read the stories of the apostles or the writings of the prophets for a set amount of time.  Then, when the person reading has stopped, the leader of our group will teach us how we can live these writings out in real life.

After that, we pray.  We stand together praying, and when we’re done we bring out the bread and wine we mentioned before (chapter 66) and the leader prays over them, thanking God for these things to the best of his ability and we all agree with him by saying “amen”.  We make sure everyone gets some of the bread and wine and we all eat and drink the things we are so thankful for.  We also make sure those who can’t join us are sent a portion, we send a designated waiter  on a house call to serve the absentees. 

Those who have the means and are willing to do so give to a common fund whatever they see fit to give. That sum is given to the leadership who then takes care of orphans and widows, those who are sick and unable to work, those who have been put in prison and their families, and any stranger who comes our way.  In a word, he is the protector of all who are in need.

We meet together on Sunday because that was the first day of creation, the day God separated light from darkness and made the world we live on.  Jesus Christ our Hero rose from the dead on Sunday as well.  He was crucified on the day before Saturn’s day (Saturday), and on the day after Saturn’s day, the day of the sun, He rose from the dead and appeared to his disciples and the apostles.

He is the One who taught them the things that we have been taught to believe, and we have now offered them to you, for your consideration.

Back to Justin.

The real history that Justin provides…the little details that provide evidence that he was an ancient Roman citizen makes this all the more compelling to me.  I love that I’m connected with this man from so long ago.  I feel his passion and frustration as though it were my own.  It helps me get my sense of perspective, remembering that Christianity isn’t the brainchild of modern evangelicals, but an epic story that spans many generations…and I’m PART of it. 

So cool.

Chapter XXV.-False Gods Abandoned by Christians.

Secondly, we used to worship Bacchus, Apollo, Proserpine, Venus or Aesculapius (the stories of whom are filled to the brim with perversity), as well as all sorts of gods that we now have utter contempt for, because of what we’ve learned from Jesus Christ.  Even though we are threatened with death, we will not return to the worship of these inferior and perverted beings.

In all honesty, we feel real pity for those who follow these religions.  Dark forces invented these gods, and we reject them. 

Chapter XXVI.-Magicians Not Trusted by Christians.

Thirdly, after Christ went back up to heaven there were those who, inspired by demonic forces, came forward to assert themselves as gods.  You did nothing to stop or harass them, in fact, some you even honored in public ways.  There was Simon the Samaritan from Gitto.  During Claudius Caesar’s reign, he (by the power of demons) did all sorts of amazing acts of magic right in the capital city of Rome.  Did you persecute him?  No, you built a statue in his honor on the river Tiber(right between the two bridges) with the inscription “Simoni Deo Sancto” (“To Simon the Holy God”)!  Almost every Samaritan and people from all sorts of local provinces call him the “first god” and worship him.  This you allow.

There was the woman Helena, the prostitute, who was living with him during his rise to fame.  They call her “the first idea”, and say she was the living incarnation of his teachings.

What of Meander the Samaritan from Capparetaea, who was a follower of Simon.  He followed in the same pattern of using magical arts to trick people into submitting to his doctrines while he was in Antioch.  Remember him?  He told people they would never die if they followed him.  There are only a handful of those who believed that line who are still alive.  This you allow.

There was the man of Pontus, Marcion, who is alive today and teaching gullible people to believe in some other god who is supposedly greater than the Creator.  He is so empowered by evil spiritual forces that he has a huge following of people who buy into his teachings of some different, hidden god who is greater than the Creator of all things.

You will find many of these people calling themselves Christians, but as we said before, just like many who don’t follow the disciplines of philosophy will call themselves philosophers, likewise many call themselves Christians who are not.  I have a treatise I’ve written previously, exposing all these false doctrines.  I can make it available to you if you’d like to read it.   Whether these false followers of Christ do the things you’ve accused us of, such as arson, sexual orgies or cannibalism, I don’t know.  What we do know is that they aren’t being arrested or put to death because of their opinions, but we are. 

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The argument that Christianity is just a borrowed religion (that is, it is simply a re-mix of older religious beliefs, from Judaism and paganism) is as old as Christianity itself.  We certainly weren’t the first generation to face that accusation, and we won’t be the last.

No hesitation, no pause from Justin.  Straight forward, head held high, heart blazing with the Truth.  Gotta’ love it!

Chapter XXIII.-The Argument.

What we hope to show you is that the words taught by Christ are true, and conform to prophesies given through the ages, confirming them and completing them.  We hope you can acknowledge our right to have faith in Him, not just because there are similarities between His teachings and the stories of the gods, but because there is truth in His words.

We hope that you will come to see that Jesus is who He claimed to be, the one and only Son of God; that He descended from a heavenly realm and took on flesh in order to rescue the human race from the fallen state of this world.  We are aware that before Jesus took on flesh and became a man, some poets and writers wrote stories that seemed to be the same story we tell of Jesus, only distorted.  We believe those writers were influenced by demonic forces that had some knowledge about what Jesus would accomplish, prompting these stories that seem to be so similar to the truth we tell about Jesus.  Some say it undermines our story, supposing we are simply telling a variant version of someone else’s religion.  We insist, there is no proof that we’ve done such a thing, nor is there anyone who can corroborate such a theory of conspiracy.  We hope to prove just the opposite, that what Jesus has taught is Truth.

Chapter XXIV.-Varieties of Heathen Worship.

First of all, we believe doctrines that are very similar to what the Greeks have believed all along, but because we follow the teachings of Christ and are Christians, you hate us.  Even though we live law-abiding lives, you arrest us and put us to death like common criminals.

As we observe the Empire, we can see a huge variety of religions and a wide assortment of venerated gods.  Some people worship trees, rivers, crocodiles, cats, mice, all kinds of dumb animals.  Not everyone worships the same animals.  To one person, the cat is a god.  Another person bows down to the mouse.  The cat guy thinks the mouse guy is nuts, and the mouse guy calls the cat guy a heretic, but Rome allows for these differences.

The only accusation you bring against us is that we don’t worship the same gods as you do.  We don’t pour wine on the statues of our ancestors, burn candles at the altars of the gods, put wreath-crowns on the heads of the statues or kill animals to get the favor of the gods.  So what if we don’t?  What about all the other differences between all the religions that Rome tolerates?  One man worships a mouse which another man kills in a trap.  The Empire allows for those differences, why not ours?

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Once again, we see the sharp contrast between our Western world and the world Justin lived (and argued) in.  He was presenting a worldview that was moving opposite the currents of mainstream orthodoxy.  His writings still translate to us though, because we walk counter to a new orthodoxy…one of Western invention.  Our orthodoxy maintains that there is no more mystery, no more wilderness for the mind.  There is a scientific orthodoxy, that states without reservation the age of the world and the origin of the species.  Real science (not this new religion we see today) allows for possibilities and seeks to probe for answers.  Not any more.  Have you listened to the debates about teaching “intelligent design” in the classroom?  Those opposed do everything but put on robes and cry “heretic!”.  (by the way…I have no vested interest in that debate…parents have the responsibilty to offer their faith to their children….it’s not the school’s responsibility, IMHO….I’m just intrigued with the debate itself, in what it reveals about our culture’s mindset)

Justin squared off against the false gods of his day….we do the same.  There are no “new” gods….just new names.

Chapter XXI.-Analogies to the History of Christ.

It is our claim that Jesus Christ is God’s word to us, that He was born into this world by a virgin, that He taught us about God, was arrested, crucified, and buried; that He rose back to life from the grave and now has ascended back up to heaven.  Yet this claim is not any more far fetched than the claims you make concerning the sons of Jupiter in your religion.  You know well the stories that have been accepted and written for posterity; you know how many sons Jupiter is supposed to have had.  Mercury, the one who teaches and interprets all things; Aesculapius, who was the great physician, but was struck by lightening and ascended into heaven; Bacchus is said to have ascended too, though only after he had been torn apart, limb from limb; Hercules escaped his struggles here on earth by throwing himself into a fire and ascending.

 There are the sons of Leda, and Dioscuri, and Persus, son of Danae, and Bellerophon, all of whom were mortals but ascended to heaven riding on the horse Pegasus.  What about Ariadne and those like her who are said to have ascended and live among the stars in the sky?

There are also the emperors who upon death are said to ascend to a deified state when their bodies are burned on a pyre.  Some swear they’ve seen the deified spirit of Caesar rise in the flames and ascend.

You recount the stories of the sons of Jupiter; you even write their deeds down to inspire our youth to live in a way that imitates the gods.  Yet when we look at those deeds, are they really what we want our young people to copy?  Jupiter, the one who supposedly governs all things he created is said to have killed his parents in overthrowing them, as his father before him had done.  He’s described as being consumed by his lust, violating Ganymede and other women at will, just as his sons did also.  Such noble gods our young are taught to imitate.

As we’ve stated already, we believe dark spiritual forces are behind the perpetuation of these stories and the imitation of their actions.

We believe that there will be those who ascend, who will be made like God; but only those who have followed Him in this life, seeking to live in harmony with His goodness and virtue.  Those who live for themselves, who only serve their own will, face the eternal punishment of forever-fire.

Chapter XXII.  Analogies to the History of Christ.

We call Jesus “the Son of God”.  Even if He was a mere mortal who was a wise teacher, you’d still have to allow us the right to call Him “Son of God”, because it is the view of all accepted writers that God is the father of all men.

When we say that He is the Word of God to mankind, and was born amidst supernatural circumstances, it shouldn’t be strange to you who call Mercury the “word of god”. His death by crucifixion perplexes you, but it shouldn’t.  It puts Him on par with those you call the sons of Jupiter who also suffered and died on this earth (as we mentioned above).  They are said to have all suffered in different ways, and died by various means.  Our declaration of Christ dying on a cross doesn’t make His death shameful.  On the contrary, as we said in the beginning of this discourse, we hope to show that His death as a sacrifice makes it far superior to the sufferings of the sons of Jupiter.  If we proclaim that Jesus was born to a woman who had never known sexual intercourse, you can accept this same way you accept the stories of Perseus who is said to have been born in a similar way. When we tell how Christ made sick people well, restoring limbs and giving sight to those who were born blind; our proclamation is similar to the stories of Aesculpius, your god of healing.

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A few issues back, Wired Magazine ran a cover story about all the stuff we don’t know.  It was fascinating.  It reminds me that Justin’s argument about the resurrection still stands up, even in our modern age.  How do we really know what can or can’t happen?  Just because we haven’t witnessed it personally, is that enough evidence to reject a concept?  The Orthodox Religion of Modern Science would say yes.  How dare you believe in something without first offering sacrifices to the spirit of empirical evidence?  To defy their conclusions is to deny their god, thus banishing all people of faith the realm of “hackery”. 

I’m with Justin, ” …who’s to say we really understand all of God’s natural order yet?”

Chapter XIX.-The Resurrection Possible.

If you didn’t know anything about how human life starts, and someone were to show you a picture of a sperm fertilizing an egg and a picture of a fully formed man, with skeletal structure and intricate muscles and nerves woven under his perfect flesh; if you were told that that large and complicated human form would result from those simple, microscopic shapes, you’d say the person proposing that is nuts.  You’d demand more proof, you’d say you need to observe that in process before you’d believe it.  Yet, though we haven’t observed it happening, no sane man would deny that human life starts that way.

In the same way, you call our belief system incredible simply because you’ve never seen a dead man rise from the dead.  It’s no more incredible to believe that God will cause our dead bodies to come back to life somehow, someday, than it is to say that complex, intelligent, human forms come from microscopic sperm.  Just like seeds are planted in the earth and dissolve, only to grow again in a new form, so we believe that our bodies, though buried, will come back again brand new.

People will argue that there is a natural order of life and death and planting and harvest, and not even God interferes with that.  But who’s to say we really understand all of God’s natural order yet?  Even what we do observe is not fully understood; how simple organisms become complex life forms.  We don’t understand how that works, but we believe it does.  Yet, even if it is impossible with the natural order, we’d rather believe in this possibility than to live so hopelessly like the whole world around us who doesn’t.  Our Master, Jesus Christ said, “All kinds of things are impossible for the natural man, but with God, all things become possible.”  He also said, “Don’t be afraid of those who can only kill your body, and nothing else.  Instead, respect and be loyal to the One who you’ll face after you die, who can throw both your body and your spirit on the garbage heap.”

That garbage heap He referred to, we believe to be a place where those who followed their own will instead of God’s will as He revealed it, will be punished.

Chapter XX.-Heathen Analogies to Christian Doctrine.

Consider how Sibyl and Hystapes said that one day, God would wipe out all material things.  The philosophy of Stoicism proposes that even God Himself will one day burn up into nothing, and a new world will appear in the wake of this cosmic revolution.  We differ from their belief in that we believe that though God created all material things, He’s not susceptible to change or wear.  In quick overview, there are some things we teach that are right in line with what the philosophers and poets teach, and you honor them (though we don’t agree on all things; we believe we have a more fully realized concept of life given to us by divine inspiration).  Though we share much in common with current philosophical schools, and we are ready and waiting to give a full explanation about why we believe what we believe, we have been isolated and illegally targeted for punishment.  Can you give an explanation for this?

When we say that there is a God who created all that we know, and set the world in it’s order, we are saying the same thing Plato did.  When we say that one day the world as we know it will be destroyed, consumed by fire, we’re saying the same thing the Stoics say.  When we say that those who lived to satisfy their own lusts and desires will face an eternal punishment, and those who have been made righteous will escape punishment in the hereafter, we’re saying the same things the poets and philosophers preach.  When we say that it’s folly to worship something that’s been crafted by mere man, we speak the same things as the comic playwright Menander and others like him, who coined the phrase, “The one who creates is greater than the creation.”

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Christians and civics…it’s always been a tough balancing act, all through the history of the church.  We belong to an invisible kingdom, and swear loyalty to an invisible King…yet we acknowledge the rulers of the world we live in, obeying and respecting them.  Often times, these two kingdoms collide and we are required to make choices…do I obey one over another?  Only as it touches eternal things.  When it comes to money or rights or freedom…the attitude of the early church as well as the NT is one of peaceful submission.  But when it touches eternal issues of fidelity to God, or morality…no choice can be made except to follow God.

It’s interesting that this tension traces all the way back to the beginning.

Chapter XVII.-Christ Taught Civil Obedience.

While other people use whatever loophole they can find, we Christians have been taught by Christ to pay all the taxes you determined we owe; both routine taxes and any special toll you deem appropriate.  We believe this because once someone asked Jesus if it was right to pay taxes to Caesar, and He answered, “Whose image has been stamped on the coins we use to pay taxes?”

They answered, “Caesar’s image.”  So He said to them, “Then this money belongs to Caesar, let him have it back.  You bear God’s image, so see to it you give to God what belongs to Him.”

That’s why we strive to worship God alone with our lives, but we’re happy to give you back your money, whatever you say you want.  We acknowledge that you are the kings and rulers of this Empire, and we pray for you, that you will rule us with wisdom and judge our case fairly.  I realize that our prayers for you and our pleading with you still may not persuade you to judge our case on the facts.  That won’t altar our course or change our confessions.   We believe that you too will owe something to God one day; you too will be called to give account, and your decision here will determine your fate in that day.  Forever-fire awaits those who reject God’s grace.  You’ve been granted power over men on this earth, and God will require an account of how you used that power.  As He said, “Those who had a lot given to them in this life will have a lot to answer for in the end.”

Chapter XVIII.-Evidence of Immortality and the Resurrection.

Everyone dies.  Even kings die the way everyone else does.  All through history, kings live and then die naturally (unless they are brought an untimely death by immoral men who grasp for power).  Either way, everyone dies.  Then what?  We have five senses while we live, and how we use those senses, whether ruled by them or submitting them to God, determine our state after this life is through. Don’t be quick to roll your eyes or shrug your shoulders at the thought of what comes after this life.  You must admit that deep down you believe there is something more, beyond.

Listen to the necromancers, the magicians, the fortune tellers who forecast through unborn children, the psychics, mediums, spiritualists, warlocks, druids and all of those who are trained and attuned to spiritual matters.  All of them with one voice attest to some kind of existence after this life.  There is the evidence that some are seized and controlled by some other force; some say spirits of the dead, some say demons, but all consider them controlled by something.  There are the reports of an afterlife from those you call oracles; Amphilochus, Dodana, Pytho, and many others.  There are the opinions of an afterlife that come from famous authors such as Empedocles, Pythagoras, Plato and Socrates.  There’s the tale of Ulysses and the Pit of Homer; there are actually so many stories that contain affirmations of the afterlife that we can’t list them all here.

You grant so many leniencies to all these various perspectives on spirituality and life after death; this same leniency is all we ask for since we are far more passionate about our conviction concerning God and judgment than any of those listed. Because we believe God is so big, it’s not impossible for us to think that after we die He could raise us from the dead, even though we are long buried and forgotten.

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