Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation
From the Center for Action and Contemplation
"Week Three: Jesus of Nazareth"
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"To Know God Is to Love God"
Friday, January 19, 2018
Jesus was a person radically centered in God, empowered by that relationship, and filled with God’s passion for the world—a passion that led to his execution and vindication. (Marcus Borg [1])Friday, January 19, 2018
Once the guiding vision of the Realm/Reign/Kingdom of God became clear to Jesus, which seems to have happened when he was about thirty and alone in the desert, everything else came into perspective. In fact, Matthew’s Gospel says, “From then onward,” Jesus began his preaching (4:17). Before this utter clarification, the message is not fully clear—in any of us. Jesus’ absolute divine reference point allowed him to relativize, critique, and evaluate everything else truthfully and in proper perspective. This was his Archimedean “place to stand,” if you will, from which he could begin to move the whole world. His center point was clear and unquestionable, allowing him to live and teach with clarity, certitude, and compassion. It was not zealotry nor righteous indignation, but deep sympathy for the human situation which drew Jesus into a ministry of healing and forgiveness.
Jesus’ center point was not an idea or theory about anything but, in fact, a Person—a thoroughly reliable, universal Love that he called “Father.” (You do not need to use the word “Father,” but I encourage you to find some form of endearment that inspires your trust because you will never fall in love with a mere idea.) This new Realm is based on a relationship with a God who can be experienced personally, presently, and existentially.
Jesus seems to be saying that God is not a philosophical system, a theory to be proven, or an energy to be discussed or controlled, although we have often reduced God to each of these. In the biblical tradition, we only seem to know God by relating to God face to face, almost as if God refuses to be known apart from love. It is all about relationship. As Martin Buber (1878-1965), the Jewish philosopher mystic, put it, “All real living is meeting.” [2] It is the “face to face” religion that began with Moses (see Exodus 33:11). The face of human suffering is the same whether it belongs to a Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Jew, or Christian, to a person who’s gay or straight, who’s a believer or an unbeliever. If we don’t see this, it’s because we haven’t risked looking into the suffering face of another.
In Jesus we see, but we did not see, that:
- God is One and for all.
- God is not subject to any group ownership or personal manipulation.
- God is available as a free gift, not through any sacrificial system (which only strengthens the ego).
- God needs no victims and creates no victims, but false religion always does.
Jesus suffers in solidarity with all humanity. He refuses to project his suffering elsewhere or blame others.
Jesus thus personifies the divine nature. He quotes the minor prophet Hosea in several contexts: “Go and learn the meaning of the words: Mercy is what pleases me, not your sacrifices” (Matthew 9:13, 12:7). We offer our “sacrifices” to a distant and demanding God. We return love to a God who is intimate and merciful. Persons bestow grace and freedom; ideas, philosophies, and laws demand only compliance.
Gateway to Presence: If you want to go deeper with today’s meditation, take note of what word or phrase stands out to you. Come back to that word or phrase throughout the day, being present to its impact and invitation.
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[1] Marcus J. Borg, Jesus: Uncovering the Life, Teachings, and Relevance of a Religious Revolutionary (HarperSanFrancisco: 2006), 304.[2] Martin Buber, I and Thou, trans. Ronald Gregor Smith (Charles Scribner’s Sons: 1958), 11.
Adapted from Richard Rohr and John Bookser Feister, Jesus’ Plan for a New World: The Sermon on the Mount (Franciscan Media: 1996), 4-6.---
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Looking ahead to Lent
Lent is intended to lead us into an always hidden future and an always greater opportunity . . . but still unknown to us. We enter with a new and open horizon, ready to both expect and work for God's ever new springtime. (Richard Rohr, God for Us)
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"Image and Likeness"
2018 Daily Meditations Theme
God said, “Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)
Richard Rohr explores places in which God’s presence has often been ignored or assumed absent. God’s “image” is our inherent identity in and union with God, an eternal essence that cannot be destroyed. “Likeness” is our personal embodiment of that inner divine image that we have the freedom to develop—or not—throughout our lives. Though we differ in likeness, the imago Dei persists and shines through all created things.
Over the course of this year’s Daily Meditations, discover opportunities to incarnate love in your unique context by unveiling the Image and Likeness of God in all that you see and do.
Each week builds on previous topics, but you can join at any time! Click the video to learn more about the theme and to find meditations you may have missed.
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Image credit: The Taking of Christ (detail), Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 1602, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland.
Jesus was a person radically centered in God, empowered by that relationship, and filled with God’s passion for the world—a passion that led to his execution and vindication. (Marcus Borg)
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News from the CAC
Looking ahead to Lent
Lent is intended to lead us into an always hidden future and an always greater opportunity . . . but still unknown to us. We enter with a new and open horizon, ready to both expect and work for God's ever new springtime. (Richard Rohr, God for Us)
Books for Lent—Father Richard’s classic, Wondrous Encounters, and God for Us —are available at store.cac.org.
To ensure domestic orders arrive by the beginning of Lent on February 14, we suggest completing your purchase by February 1; customers outside the United States should allow more time.
Online Courses
Explore CAC's self-paced, contemplative studies:
The Franciscan Way: Beyond the Bird Bath
February 7–March 27, 2018 (Registration closes January 24)
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February 28–May 8, 2018 (Registration closes February 14)
Register soon at cac.org/online-ed.Registration closes two weeks prior to a course start date or when full. Applications for financial assistance are due one week before registration is scheduled to close.
"Image and Likeness"
2018 Daily Meditations Theme
God said, “Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)
Richard Rohr explores places in which God’s presence has often been ignored or assumed absent. God’s “image” is our inherent identity in and union with God, an eternal essence that cannot be destroyed. “Likeness” is our personal embodiment of that inner divine image that we have the freedom to develop—or not—throughout our lives. Though we differ in likeness, the imago Dei persists and shines through all created things.
Over the course of this year’s Daily Meditations, discover opportunities to incarnate love in your unique context by unveiling the Image and Likeness of God in all that you see and do.
Each week builds on previous topics, but you can join at any time! Click the video to learn more about the theme and to find meditations you may have missed.
We hope that reading these messages is a contemplative, spiritual practice for you. Learn about contemplative prayer and other forms of meditation. For frequently asked questions—such as what versions of the Bible Father Richard recommends or how to ensure you receive every meditation—please see our email FAQ.Richard Rohr's Daily Meditations are made possible through the generosity of CAC's donors. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation.
If you would like to change how often you receive emails from CAC, click here. If you would like to change your email address, click here. Visit our Email Subscription FAQ page for more information.
Image credit: The Taking of Christ (detail), Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, 1602, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland.
Jesus was a person radically centered in God, empowered by that relationship, and filled with God’s passion for the world—a passion that led to his execution and vindication. (Marcus Borg)
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