An Indigenous Gospel

I love the vast variety of Bible translations. I grew up on the Revised Standard Version back when it was controversial to read anything but the King James Version. Then I discovered the simplicity of the Good News Bible. In college I appreciated the accuracy of New American Standard Bible. In seminary my favorite was the New International Version. During my ministry I have most often used the New King James Version and more recently the English Standard Version. So many wonderful translations!

Having studied Hebrew and Greek in seminary I have not been a fan of paraphrases, such as the Living Bible and The Message, even though they have been popular with members of my churches. In recent years I have moderated my opinion of such “thought for thought” translations of the Bible, appreciating their value.

Today the internet gives us access to dozens of translations free of charge through sites like Bible Gateway and Bible Hub. Every year or two another new translation will hit the shelves, each with their own intended audience, whether it be conservatives, liberals, women, men or youth. Recently a new translation of the New Testament has piqued my interest. It is the First Nations Version: An Indigenous Translation of the New Testament, published by InterVarsity Press on August 31.

The Lead Translator and Project Manager is Terry Wildman, who is of Ojibwe and Yaqui ancestry. He was aided by a translation council selected from a cross-section of Native North Americans. The First Nations Version is translated by Native Americans for Native Americans. These native peoples also intend it as a gift from Native Americans to the dominant culture, as a way to communicate the unique way that First Peoples understand the gospel.

There are unique elements in the FNV not found in other translations. It has the cadence and feel of an oral storyteller. This not only reflects indigenous spirituality, but is likely how the stories of the New Testament were originally preserved. It also follows Native American naming traditions by using the meaning of biblical names for persons and places. For example, Abraham is Father of Many Nations. Israel is Wrestles with Creator. Peter is Stands on the Rock. Paul is Small Man. Jerusalem is Village of Peace. Galilee is Circle of Nations.

My favorite aspect of this new translation is the names for the Divine. Usually God is referred to as Great Spirit or Great Mystery. Other names are Creator, Maker of Life, Giver of Breath, One Above Us All, and Most Holy One. Jesus is called Creator Sets Free. The title of Christ is translated Chosen One. The Gospel is the Great Story.

These descriptive names add a freshness that I have not found in any other version. They tie the Christian gospel to Native American culture. The God that native peoples have always known through indigenous spiritual traditions is the God revealed in Creator Sets Free. Most important to me is that it gives me permission to use creative terms for the Divine.

I am presently writing a book that I am calling The Gospel According to Jesus: A Nondual Version of the Story of Jesus. It tells the familiar gospel narrative from the perspective of Jesus. I use the Gospel of Mark as my basic text, much like Matthew and Luke used Mark’s gospel as the basis of their works. I also use the non-canonical Gospel of Thomas as a source for sayings of Jesus, much like Matthew and Luke used an anonymous non-canonical source, which is called Q by biblical scholars.

In writing this gospel my dilemma has been how to translate important terms: Son of God, Son of Man, Christ, Kingdom of God, and the Kingdom of Heaven. They need to be accurate while also communicating the meaning in a fresh way. Reading the First Nations Version freed me to use nontraditional language: the Divine One, the Human One, the Presence of God, Union with God, the Divine Realm, the Spiritual Realm. Jesus is the Liberated One, the Liberator, or the Free One.

The FNV ties Christian spirituality to indigenous spirituality. I tie Jesus’ spirituality to nonduality. In a similar fashion the apostle John tied the message of Jesus to Greek philosophy. There is one gospel. Whether it is the gospel of Christianity, the wisdom of indigenous peoples, the truth at the heart of the major religious traditions, or the message of a Jewish carpenter from Galilee.

There is one Truth. It is a matter of recognizing and communicating that Reality the best we can. The First Nations Version is helping me to do that. That translation is a true gift from Native Americans. It is aiding me to communicate the timeless wisdom of the ages in terms that reveal the nondual essence at the heart of the teaching of the Liberated One. 

The Meanness Virus

There is an epidemic spreading across our nation that is worse than the COVID-19 pandemic. This societal disease does not have an official name, but I call it the “meanness virus.” It is as contagious as any coronavirus. I do not remember Americans ever being this mean. There have always been bullies and verbally abusive people, but I don’t ever remember such behavior being socially acceptable, especially among elected leaders and people running for office.

This bad behavior has spread to all levels of society. Listen to any talk show on the radio. They are easy to find on the dial. You will get an earful of overt contempt, scorn and ridicule from the host and callers. The attitude is also exhibited in countless Letters to the Editor in local newspapers.

On our town’s local Google group, which serves as a public forum for our small New Hampshire town, it is now common for people to speak condescendingly toward others, treating them as if they were stupid or evil or both – simply for holding a different political position. It is not limited to online comments. In our town there is a yard sign that uses a vulgarity in reference to the president. So much for public civility. Bedford Falls has become Pottersville.

The meanness virus has spread to Christian venues. I was shocked when I tuned into a Christian radio channel and heard the same vitriolic memes I hear on secular talk radio. Christianity used to be known for niceness. In fact “being a Christian gentleman” or a “Christian woman” was synonymous with being nice. Now Christianity has a reputation for being mean.

It is hard to overestimate the damage this plague of meanness, which is spewing from Christian pulpits and pens, has done to the cause of the gospel. People – especially young people - are voting with their feet. The meanness virus is emptying the churches faster than the COVID pandemic.

Some Christians derogatorily call those who hold a different political position “sheep” or “sheeple.” One devout family member taunted me with cries of “Baa, baa” when I voiced a position that differed from his standard of “evangelical correctness.” He seems to have forgotten that “sheep” was Jesus’ term for his followers. Another church-going family member praised a politician she described as a “strongman,” apparently without realizing that “strongman” was Jesus’ term for the devil.

What is the solution? Is there an antidote? Is there a vaccine? If there were, undoubtedly some would exercise their right not to receive it. People would see it as their God-given right to exercise meanness in the name of free speech. Religion does not seem to have a cure. At least not the type of Christian religion that dominates American media. If that were the case Christianity would not have become so nasty.

As a Christian I can only speak to my own religion. I will let those of other faiths speak to their traditions. I believe that Christians need to repent of meanness. As the turn of the century Methodist revivalist Sam P. Jones used to preach: “You better quit your meanness.” I include myself in this admonition. I am not immune to the temptation to return evil for evil. “None are righteous, no not one.”

There is a need for spiritual renewal. The old wineskins of the Christian religion need to be exchanged for new wineskins.  I regularly hear Christians calling for a national revival today, but these calls tend to be for a return to the “old-time religion” that got us into this mess. They want to repair the worn-out wineskins. We need something entirely new.

We need an antidote for the toxic Christianity that has poisoned American culture. Megachurches ruled by mega-personalities with mega-egos and media megaphones need to be replaced by local, homegrown, face-to-face, inclusive spirituality that focuses on loving God and loving your neighbor as yourself. Fortunately that is already present in many small churches.

If love means anything at all, it means treating people with honor and respect. It means focusing on what the apostle Paul calls the “fruit of the Spirit”: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” As he concludes, “against such things there is no law.” Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

Lying Awake

I love reading fiction, and I love reading books on spirituality. Yet it is rare to find a quality work of spiritual fiction. Too much religious fiction is pabulum – filled with New Age memes or Christian platitudes. So when a listener to my podcast recommended Lying Awake by Mark Salzman, I bought it. It is a brief book, less than 200 pages, but rich in spiritual insight.

It is about Sister John of the Cross, a member of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, founded by Saint Teresa of Avila in the sixteenth century. Sister John is cloistered in the monastery of the Sisters of the Carmel of Saint Joseph in present day Los Angeles. 

She is a woman of unique spiritual insight and intimacy with God, who has developed a reputation outside the monastery as the author of a book of essays and poems about contemplative life entitled, Sparrow on a Roof, based on her vibrant spiritual experiences. 

Sister John suffers from terrible headaches and seizures. The seizures become so severe that they disrupt the community, and Mother Mary Joseph insists that she seek medical care. It turns out that she has temporal-lobe epilepsy caused by a small meningioma under her skull. This noncancerous brain tumor appears to be the source of her headaches and seizures, and likely the cause of her mystical experiences as well.

She is faced with the decision of whether or not to have surgery to remove the tumor. Her dilemma is that if the tumor is removed, it may also remove her sense of closeness to God. I won’t reveal what she decides and what follows, so as not to spoil the book - just in case you decide to read it. The reasons for her decision are the best part of the book.

This slender volume made me ponder the relationship between health and spirituality. Recently I recorded a podcast episode and YouTube video entitled, “Was Jesus Mentally Ill?” I explored the relationship between mental illness and spiritual genius. The gospels record that Jesus’ family thought he had “lost his senses,” and “has a demon and is insane.” I wonder aloud if Jesus’ family members, who knew him the longest and best, were correct.

In discussing the topic with a friend I joked that if there had been antidepressants in biblical times, we would not have half of the prophetic books or psalms of the Old Testament! Indeed we might not have the New Testament at all! There seems to be a relationship between mental illness and spirituality, as well as between epilepsy and religious experience. These connections are explored in this book.

Lying Awake made me look at both spiritual experience and suffering from a different perspective.  How much of our religious beliefs and spiritual experiences are due to physiological factors? What if spiritual experience is nothing more than a chemical imbalance in the brain? Does that make religion a symptom of mental illness? Does that make spirituality invalid or less authentic?

How is suffering linked to spirituality? There is an oft-observed connection between severe illness, personal tragedies and spirituality. Just read the Book of Job!  Often the onset of catastrophe or severe illness drives a person to examine his or her priorities. Countless times I have ministered to people who were seeking God because of a dramatic change in life’s circumstances.

People assume that health is good and suffering is bad. People go to great lengths to be free of emotional, spiritual and physical suffering – including taking solace in religion and spirituality. Buddhism says that suffering prompted Gautama Siddhartha to begin his spiritual search.

The book made me take a second look at suffering in my life. I have not suffered greatly in life, but I know what great suffering looks like. As a pastor I have ministered to people who endured great suffering – emotional, spiritual and physical. That is how I know I have been spared the worst that life can inflict. Yet I have had my share of suffering and pain.

We all suffer. Life is suffering, as the Buddha taught. We all have to decide how to approach suffering and how it fits into our spiritual life. My life is better for suffering. Suffering has forced me to look at life without flinching. 

Witnessing evil and suffering has caused me to wrestle with the theological “problem of suffering” and the “problem of evil.” That in turn has forced me beyond the easy theodicy that Christians so hurriedly embrace. It propelled me into the fathomless Mystery at the heart of existence.

I am grateful for the suffering I have known. It has revealed God and softened my heart. It has prompted compassion and made me a better pastor. Suffering is intimately connected to the Great Mystery that we call God. That is the meaning of the Cross. 

Throughout the book Sister John’s prayers returned to the suffering of Jesus. Her thoughts led me to ponder anew the Cross, the central symbol of our shared faith. There is no easy answer to suffering, but one can see the answer from the Cross.

Losing the War

There is no good way to lose a war. My generation’s war was Vietnam. This generation’s war is Afghanistan. Both were long, unpopular wars that were impossible to win. The photos of the airlifts from the airports of Kabul and Saigon are eerily similar. Both wars were mistakes from beginning to end. Both were fought by brave American soldiers who fulfilled their duty to their country. They are not to blame for the defeat.

Americans do not like to lose. When it occurs we need a scapegoat to blame, and the easy target is the occupant of the Oval Office. “The buck stops here,” as Truman’s sign on the Resolute Desk read. He oversaw victory in one war and stalemate in another. President Biden has received criticism from right and left for his handling of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. The truth is there is more than enough blame to go around for this and previous administrations, starting with the one who got us into Afghanistan.

It is easy to blame presidents, especially those of the opposing party. Partisan shots are cheap shots in my opinion. It takes no critical thinking to repeat what party propagandists say. For that reason I have always endeavored to be even-handed - critiquing leaders of both parties, my own as much as the other. To withhold criticism from one’s own party leaders is to invite demagogues to rise to power. That is what has led to our present predicament.

The Afghanistan War is over, but there is another war happening. It is the war within the human soul. This inner war is the cause of all our nation’s wars. The apostle James is reported to have written, “Where do wars come from? Why do people fight? It all comes from within, doesn't it?” In a recent blog post I quoted an interpreter of the Bhagavad Gita: “When a battle is raging within, enemies appear on the outside.”

There is a war in the human soul. The autocratic self seeks to rule in life by defeating all earthly and spiritual enemies. It hopes to defeat death and live forever. The truth is that the war is already lost, just as certainly as defeat in Afghanistan was a forgone conclusion. The human self will always lose; it will die. It is born of flesh and will die with the flesh.

The good news is that there is eternal life, but it is not for the self to possess. Life is won only when we surrender to the One who is our true Life. As Jesus taught, “Whoever seeks to save his soul will lose it, but whoever loses his soul for my sake will find it.” When the Spirit wins, the self loses. When the self loses, eternal life is seen as the reality of our lives all along.

The way to win is to lose. The way to live is to die. The first shall be last and the last first. The greatest is the servant of all. That is the way of the spiritual life. As Saint Francis is reported to have prayed, “For it is in giving that we receive. It is in pardoning that we are pardoned. And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.” Amen. 

A Pandemic Parable

COVID-19 was ravaging the land, killing hundreds of thousands of people. A preacher knelt in prayer asking God to save his congregation from the deadly pestilence. The town physician advised the pastor to halt in-person services and practice social distancing. The preacher replied, “We have the first amendment right to worship! I will not give in to fear. I have faith in God. The Lord will protect us.”

As more members of the community became ill, the mayor of the town came to the preacher and said, “The CDC is recommending that everyone wear masks in public and that we limit indoor gatherings. I recommend that you and your congregation comply for the sake of the community.” The preacher replied, “I do not trust the CDC. No one is going to take away our freedom and make us wear masks. I trust in the Lord. He will save us.”

As things got worse in town and the ICU filled up, the preacher saw on the television news that both the present and former presidents of the United States were advising everyone to get the COVID vaccine. The preacher proclaimed to his congregation, “We must not listen to politicians! They are in the pocket of Big Pharma. The vaccine is the Mark of the Beast. Do not receive it. Faith over fear! The Lord will protect us.”

Shortly later the preacher became ill, was hospitalized, and soon died of COVID. He stood before his Lord in heaven, and asked the Almighty, “I had unwavering faith in you, Lord. Why did you not protect me?” The Lord replied, “I sent my messengers telling you to wear masks, practice social distancing and get the vaccine! What more did you want from me?!” 

Holy War

At the beginning of the summer I saw an announcement in the newsletter of the New Hampshire Alliance, a “regional network” of “evangelical and renewal ministries.” The stated goal of the alliance is “to inform, inspire, and activate a Kingdom network, revitalizing our state.” The ad promoted an upcoming “Warrior Training Camp” at a Pentecostal church in Boston. The ad used crossed swords and an image of a battlefield with crusaders in full armor.

I immediately recognized what this was about. I have seen many similar images in Christian educational literature. This is a reference to the “full armor of God” mentioned in the New Testament Letter to the Ephesians, traditionally attributed to the apostle Paul. I also know that many people in our biblically illiterate society would not catch the biblical reference or know that the original intent of the biblical author was about making peace and not war.

What brought this image back to mind was a sermon given at our church last Sunday. The pastor creatively interpreted the Ephesian “armor of God” passage and reclaimed its original nonviolent intent. Good job, pastor! The timing could not have been better. It happened to be the Sunday after the fall of Kabul.  The image of Taliban soldiers taking their country back for Allah was on everyone’s mind. These Islamic warriors employ Koranic passages about jihad but take them literally and not metaphorically.

While listening to the sermon, images of American protestors storming the US Capitol on January 6 came to my mind. Many of these Americans were dressed in military camouflage and carried Confederate flags, American flags, and banners proclaiming their loyalty to Jesus and the 45th president of the United States. Do not get me wrong. I am not implying a “moral equivalency” between these groups. There is no comparison when it comes to the violence involved. I am relaying images that came unbidden to my mind.

The crusader mentality is very much alive these days, both in Christianity and Islam. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association calls their evangelistic meetings “crusades.” Muslim extremists use the specter of Christian crusaders invading the lands of the Middle East as a recruiting tool. The imagery of Christian warriors resonates with Christian Nationalists and the “culture warriors” of the Religious Right, who are trying to reclaim America for God by exercising both their first and second amendment rights.

The apostle Paul had a very creative idea to use the armor of a Roman solider to describe Christian virtues. But after two thousand years of misunderstanding, it may be time for the Church to retire the military metaphor for the Christian life. Too many people take the image literally rather than figuratively. When you have Christian pastors promoting fear rather than faith, the sword more than the cross, then something has gone seriously wrong.

Is there a spiritual struggle going on? Yes, indeed! But as the apostle says, our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces in the spiritual realm. This is an inner spiritual war, not an outward political, military or cultural war. It is about war in the human soul. We are our own worst enemy. As Pogo said, "We have met the enemy and he is us."

John Bunyan describes this spiritual fight brilliantly in his allegory “The Holy War,” which I find to be as insightful as his more famous “The Pilgrim’s Progress.” To find the enemy we are to look not across our borders but within our hearts.

The Hadith says that Muhammad spoke of an “inner jihad.” The apostle James says that the source of fighting in the world is war in the heart. The Gita teaches the same thing. As one commentator says, “When a battle is raging within, enemies appear on the outside.” If we are serious about winning this spiritual war, we need to step onto the right battlefield with the right weapons. Then we will be waging peace instead of war. 

The Scent of God

There was an interesting article in the New York Times recently about a professional Italian epicure who lost his sense of smell and taste due to COVID. His name is Michele Crippa. He is a celebrated gastronome known for his ability to discern the most delicate of smells and flavors.

The article says that he was able “to distinguish between Parmesan cheeses of different ages — and between milk extracted at different altitudes. He reveled in the perfume of cod smoked over pine cones. In his reviews for Italy’s pre-eminent food magazine, he discerned the scent of champagne in raw Nicaraguan coffee beans and tasted traces of green peas in a blend from Kenya.”

One March day in 2020 he lost his sense of smell and taste overnight. He poured himself a cup of coffee and could taste only water. His sense of taste was warped. “Spoiled milk tasted fine. Sweet wafts of vanilla triggered heaves of disgust. Peaches tasted like basil.” Now he is on a mission to recapture his sense of taste and smell and help others who are similarly afflicted.  It is working … at least in part.

When I read this, I could not help but compare it to spirituality. It seems to me that much of American Christianity has lost its sense of smell and taste. It can no longer smell or taste God. Some forms of Christianity are so artificial that they are poisonous to the soul. More than once I have left a worship service because of poisonous preaching. Such religion is dangerous to one’s spiritual health.

Many churches have substituted beliefs about God for experience of God. Political ideology and culture warfare are increasingly being substituted for spirituality. Even when the spiritual dimension is proclaimed, congregants are taught to rely on someone else’s word about God - by way of authoritative scriptures, creeds, or religious leaders - rather than tasting God for themselves. When left unexercised the intuitive sense of God atrophies.

The good news is that the sense of God can be recovered, just like COVID victims can recover a degree of smell and taste. We can know God directly. Some forms of Christianity know this and teach this. Some churches proclaim the original gospel of Jesus instead of the manmade gospel about Jesus. If that were not so, I would no longer call myself a Christian or attend Christian worship regularly.

I can smell God. I can taste God. God has an unmistakable aroma that cannot be put into words. Can you describe the scent of geraniums or the aroma of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies? It is like describing colors to the blind. But you know these when you smell them or taste them! It is the same with God. You know God when you smell God or taste God. You recognize the scent of God. For me the fragrance of God is unmistakable.

I think that is why holy places are so often associated with incense, fragrant oils, or rituals involving food. These are physical reminders of spiritual presence. That is why the Eucharist is such an important part of the Christian tradition. Catholics even refer to it as Real Presence.

Not being able to sense the presence of God would feel to me like losing one of our five physical senses. That is why the “dark night of the soul” – the seeming absence of God - seems so terrible to people like Mother Teresa or Saint John of the Cross.

God’s subtle – and sometimes overpowering presence – is everywhere and in everything. Seemingly in some places more than others – holy places. Seemingly in some people more than others – holy people. Yet in reality all places and people are holy. There is no place or person that does not carry the scent of the divine.

Jesus called this divine omnipresence the Kingdom of God. I use Jesus’ term, but also call it the Presence of God or Unitive Awareness. Call it whatever you want, using whatever religious language you prefer. It is not important what label you assign it. What is important is that we smell and taste this for ourselves. As the psalmist says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in God.”